Guest Post: Lord Katana Explains All About Floggers 1 comment

Guest Post: Lord Katana Explains All About Floggers

Today’s guest post is by Lord Katana. He is a good friend with a wonderful talent for making hand crafted floggers and other leather items. He made Beauty’s play cuffs, several of my favorite floggers, and my present last Christmas which was a belt/holster that has a holster for my neon wand and another holster for the Hitachi for hands free electric play and at ready fun during a play session. (Note, don’t grab the Hitachi before turning the wand off. Bad mix of electricity.)

I asked him to share some of his expertise with my readers so they can learn to make informed decisions when buying toys, as well as learning how the different materials a flogger is made from can change the feel of play.

Thank you for agreeing to share your expertise with us. Can you tell my readers a little about yourself and how you came to make floggers?

I am a Dominant and have been so for all of my adult life. I have a collared submissive. We have been together for about 10 years and 24/7 for 8 years. I would have to say that I have a sadistic streak which is matched nicely by her masochistic streak. As for what I like: the crack of a whip, the smack of a paddle hitting an ass, the thud of a flogger and the moans and groans of a supplicant…………PRICELESS!

I have a D/s life related business called Katana Works (www.katanaworks.com) and have been a vendor at many events in the Chicago area as well as the Madison Wisconsin area and St Louis. I enjoy woodworking as well as leather crafting. I make floggers, whips, straps, restraints, harnesses, collars and lots of other wicked devices. I specialize in exotic woods that you don’t see every day.

1. What are the different materials you use when making floggers?

I use deer, elk, bison, cow and bull hides in the making of my floggers I have also made some with rubber. Deer and Elk are very soft tempered and are thuddy. They have a great smell and are very sensuous. Cowhide can vary from soft temper to stiff. Soft temper is thuddy and stiff is stingy. Bull hide and bison are very dense and pack a heavy thuddy.

2. What about the handles? Is there something people should feel for?

The handle first and foremost should feel comfortable in your hand. The ball or knot should be placed in the palm of the hand forming a ball joint. This gives you the most leverage when it is in motion. My handles are primarily exotic wood that has been hand lathed. I also use laminated wood to turn handles on my lathe. The laminates come in different colors and when turned on a lathe they produce intricate designs. The handle is your lever.

3. How should someone pick a flogger that’s right for them?

Your experience will determine what type of flogger to buy. Someone new might go with a soft suede which is basically thuddy and less expensive. If you want intensity then you go with a braided tail or a thin cut fall. The thinner the fall the more sting it gives. As you progress you move up to cowhides and bull hides for heavier thud and intensity. When buying a flogger you should look carefully at the quality of the product. Prices will vary but you get what you pay for. There is a difference between a toy and the real thing.

4. Which type of leather delivers a sting?

Thin cut and braided falls provide the most sensation. I don’t like the word pain because it has negative connotations. It is all about sensation. Some is intense and some is not. It is all relative as what one person thinks is intense another will find to be mild.

5. Which is best for a thuddy feeling?

To get thud I always use Deer, Elk or Moose. These are soft tempered leathers that give a great thuddy massage. The temper of the leather refers to the stiffness.

6. If you want to deliver a flogging to a heavy masochist what kind of flogger would you use?

If you’re doing heavy play than I use thin cut floggers and braided floggers like a cat. I also mix in some crop and strap sensations to break the scene up a bit. If you are well versed in their use a single tail can be brought into the scene. Only use this if you have practiced with this implement and are accurate with it as it can do great harm.

7. Can you tell us how you work through a flogging session? Sting to thud or thud to sting or some other sensation and how you wrap it up?

Most scenes have four main components. The first is the warm up . Here you use something thuddy to warm up the areas you will be striking and get the blood flowing. Next would be the main part of the scene which ramps up the intensity. I like to take my partners on what I call a roller coaster ride. That is that I ramp up the intensity until I see that the person is getting uncomfortable and then I back it up a little and let them catch their breath and relax. Then I ramp it up again and try to get them a little farther along than before. This is repeated several times and each time the intensity is ramped up a little more.

Each individual is different so you have to watch and monitor their breathing and perspiration levels as these are signs of distress. This is followed by the cool down. This helps the subject regain their bearing and return to a slower breathing pattern. The last component would be the aftercare. Aftercare is a subject that is debated in some BDSM circles. It would depend on the person in the scene. Some need and want it and some don’t. (Note from Jolynn, Always negotiate after care needs before a session)

8. Flogging has gotten somewhat of a bad rap because of the idea that it is terribly painful like the cat–o-nine tails. Do all floggings have to hurt? Do they break the skin?

A flogging can be soft and sensuous when done with a thuddy flogger such as an elk or deerskin. Throw in a rabbit flogger for a change of pace and you can have a sensuous scene that will not mark but will still leave the subject satisfied. If the subject is a masochist then the scene can be a lot more intense with the right utensils.

9. What safety precautions do people need to take if they wish to flog someone?

Safety should always be a consideration. Know how to use whatever implement you want to strike someone with and most of all be accurate with it. Be able to hit what you are aiming at. When using a flogger the proper strike would involve hitting with the upper third of the falls. Be aware of the subject’s reaction to the scene. DO NOT STRIKE ON THE SPINAL CORD OR KIDNEY AREAS. Also be aware of the kidney area and avoid striking there. Make sure you have the proper distance gauged to avoid unintentional wrapping of the falls. If striking the upper shoulder from the back it is important you don’t wrap and hit the person in the face. I always recommend eye wear if using a single tail.

10.   Beauty and I already know you make the best floggers, what else do you offer in hand crafted toys or accessories?

I make floggers and whips. I also make harnesses, collars, restraints, straps and paracord braided quirts and bull whips.